Jesus Loves Me This I Know!

So this week was AMAZING because God is faithful and never changes. He truly is the lover of my soul. Tonight we just completed our last week of conferences for 2009. Well this week God showed Himself strong and surprised me in the process and caused me to be overwhelmed. I was really missing my family this week. Which is unusual for me because I'm pretty used to being away and am content with where God has me. Well I was having an extremely hard time with not being able to see my family for Christmas. I asked my team to pray for me because I knew I was going to Wisconsin because I had no money to go home. My plan was to look forward to trying to go to Hawaii in the summer if I had the money. Well my team prayed for me.

I was able to keep focus during our services but every once in a while during the day it would just hit me how much I missed my dad and sisters. Well as much as I put my focus on God and asked Him to give me the grace to get through this I was still really struggling. My heart felt like it couldn't be calmed as much as I wanted it to. Well...God had a reason for that. On Wednesday when we were packing up all our stuff our team Revivalist sat us down for a meeting. He wanted to read some testimonies from people at the church. He read how God had changed them in the course of 4 days. Then He thanked us for our giving. We wanted to help the widows in the church financially and we raised hundreds of dollars within our team. He said that as a "dad" he was proud of us. He said not only had we been giving to the body of Christ at the church we were ministering at but were giving to each other. Then Ryan said Shawntay, I want to let you know that your team wants to send you home for Christmas. My eyes welled up with tears of joy. Now I saw why God wouldn't let my missing my family go away. And God let me see how much my team loves me.

So I'll be going home to Hawaii a few days after our team's missions trip to El Salvador. I'll be going to Wisconsin to touch base with friends there and then I'll head home for a few weeks. I'll go back to Wisconsin and then head to Michigan at the beginning of January. I'm stoked to see what God has in store for me. He has been refining me and changing me to be more like Him. I'm learning what it is like to live a Christian life with freedom and joy and not in bondage of this flesh.

I love God and I'm glad He is the lover of my soul. I love talking to Him in prayer. Its better than any conversation on the cellphone.

One BIG thing God is teaching me is: to be who God wants me to be.

Update for October

In the month of October I sent around 130 support letters out for my missions trip to El Salvador. Along with sending an e-mail to a bunch of people and posting it on my facebook. I needed $1,000 by October 31st. Well today being November 2nd the $1,000 is supposed to be in. Well God did like only He can do. He provided "exceeding abundantly above all we ask or think". In the month of October I had around $1,800 come in. I knew God would be faithful. It's been neat to see God provide for me through the years.

Although I'm done with raising support for my missions trip, I'm still having to raise funds for this year's expenses. This year I needed $1,500 for El Salvador's missions trip, $3,000 for my ministry fees, and $3,000 for health insurance. Currently I need a little less than $3,000 to cover for the rest of this year.

Some of you know that I also have to raise personal support. I haven't wanted to really mention that yet this year because I had so much I had to raise in order to be traveling with Life Action. Well because we have a break in December I know I'm going to be needing some money. Since I've been traveling the Lord has used host parents to provide cash for me to get things I need personally. Specifically on my birthday my host parents ended up getting a card and having a bunch of people from the church sign it and they had given money to me too. That was such a huge blessing because I was running quite low on cash.

I also need to mention a change that was made this summer regarding our support raising. Previously we were able to raise money for ministry support and personal support. We are not able to do that separately anymore. Now what is happening is that all the funds that come in go directly to my personal ministry support. After I raise my ministry support I am able to receive a stipend. The stipend is determined by how much excess in funds I have. But I will only be able to receive up to $300 a month. For example, when my ministry expense is paid off if I have $50 in excess I will get $50. If I have $400 in excess I will get $300 for that month and the next month I can get $100 more. I hope that makes sense it is kind of confusing.

They have advised us that we can raise personal support and just ask our supporters to send it directly to us. So if you would like to send me some personal support and help me make it financially through December you can send it to me at

Shawntay Celestino
PO BOX 31
Buchanan, MI 49107

You can also send me letters through this address. At this PO Box they collect all the team's mail and send it on to the church that we'll be at.

There's so much more that I'd like to say but I'd have to save it for another time. I have to get ready for my day.

I hope you all have a God honoring day.

Serving Him,
Shawntay Celestino

My Most Recent Mass E-mail and Facebook Note

Most of you know that I'm traveling with Life Action Ministries. Last year we had the opportunity to go to El Salvador and minister to a children's home and put a well in at a local village. Previously they were getting all their water from the stream which was very dirty.

We have the opportunity to go back and help at the Children's Home and at a church near last year's well site. We leave November 28th and will be there for about a week. Our team consist of 15 single aged team members and 3 families. All the team members will be going but not all the families will be going.

We have been asked to raise $1,500 each and they have asked that $1,000 be in by October 30th. Will you please consider supporting me on this mission trip?

Serving Him,
Shawntay Celestino

Make checks out to Life Action Ministries with a note designating the funds for Shawntay Celestino otherwise it will go to Life Action's general fund.

Send to:
Support Development Department
Life Action Ministries
PO BOX 31
Buchanan, MI 49107

A Couple Pictures

Here's a picture of this year's team, they have a great spirit about them and it's been neat to get to know all of them. The other picture is one someone took of me while I was reading Danny and the Dinosaur to the 2 year olds in the nursery. During our 8-day Summit in Waller, Texas I was able to help out a little bit in the nursery. I now appreciate nursery workers more and I wish I would have sooner.

Thank you for all those who serve in church nurseries. You are being a blessing to those mothers who have very young children.

Just a quick update

I haven't really been able to be on line for a bit. But since I have time right now I just wanted to ask you all to pray. I have either broken my toe or badly bruised it. My current host dad used to work as an EMT. He said that I should wear close toed shoes and not jump and stuff like that for about 6 weeks. I praise the Lord that after the 6th week we will be going to El Salvador. But I'd like you to pray that my foot would be okay for my trip to El Salvador. Last year I enjoyed playing soccer a lot with the kids and I really would like to be able to do that again.

God answers prayer. Ye have not because ye ask not. So please join with me in prayer for my foot.

Shawntay

Happy Early Birthday!

The Lord used a boy in Base Camp to be such a blessing to me. This week in Hopkinsville, KY I asked two kids how old they were and then I asked "when's your birthday?" Come to find out one of the boys birthday was the day before mine. Well a few nights later I was greeted with a birthday card and early birthday present. He was very thoughtful and wanted to get me something because I was going to be away from my family. Last night his mother told me that they would be praying for me.

I thank the Lord that He chooses to use people to be a blessing to one another.

Our next stop will be in Dallas, Georgia.

On the Road Again

My second year of traveling with Life Action Ministries has officially started. At the end of July the new teams were all in Buchanan, Michigan to start traveling for the 2009-2010 season. Last week my team arrived in Troy, TN for our 1st 4-day THIRST Conference. The conference went very well. I am helping out in Base Camp (2nd grade to 6th grade) again. I enjoyed our Tuesday night service with the kids; they were terrific. They were so attentive to the story and were enthusiastic singing the songs. One little boy was so into the story that he almost fell off his chair while he was listening.

This week we are in Hopkinsville, KY. This morning was our Sunday service where we have the children for 3 hours. The count was over 60 kids. I hope that most of them get to come back. There are quite a few that come through a bus ministry. Please pray that things will go well for them so that the ones that minister to them all the time can take a break and be refreshed themselves.

Oh this year my team consist of 15 team members and 3 families. All but the 3 families and 6 of the girls are new to traveling with Life Action. Please pray for us as we transition with the new team and that the new team members would adjust easily to our crazy traveling schedule.